The leader of an international network that tortured monkeys for entertainment has been sentenced to more than three years in prison, but is expected to be released after serving only about one-third of the term.
Bartosz Poklek, 30, headed an online ‘cult’ focused on the torture and killing of monkeys. He helped distribute ‘horrific’ cruelty videos that were sold for as much as £375 each.
He wrote instructions detailing how the animals should be mutilated, dismembered and tortured, and directed the manner of their deaths. In some cases, monkeys were beaten to death with a hammer.
When imposing a three-year prison sentence, the judge said Parliament should reconsider the penalties for serious animal abuse, which currently carry a maximum term of five years.
Poklek is expected to be released after serving roughly a third of his sentence. The judge said: ‘If ever there was a case that demonstrates that the statutory maximum for animal cruelty is too low, this is it.’
Woolwich Crown Court heard that Poklek, from Bexley in south-east London, played a central role in the online ‘monkey hate’ community. He ran chat groups and circulated thousands of ‘abuse on demand’ videos and images.
Some monkeys were dressed as babies while being violently attacked, prompting increasing concern that the animals may be used as ‘proxies’ by viewers seeking content involving the abuse of children.
On Friday, Judge Christopher Grout sentenced Poklek to three years and three months in prison.
Bartosz Poklek is expected to serve only a third of his three-year prison sentence for animal abuse
Monkeys were sold online to people who dictated how they wanted the animals tortured and killed. Pictured: Poklek holding a wad of cash in front of a picture of a monkey
The judge described the ‘despicable’ online network as a community of ‘zoosadists’—people who take pleasure in animal torture. He told the court: ‘It is no exaggeration to say that as a lawyer or as a judge I have never encountered such a horrific case of animal abuse in my life.
‘The facts of the offending are truly appalling, likely to cause distress to anyone listening to or reading about them.
‘There is a vile underground community who have a hatred of monkeys, particularly baby monkeys, and take pleasure in seeing such monkeys being tortured and killed.’
The court heard that the abuse took place in south-east Asia, where macaque monkeys were subjected to prolonged torture on camera for online viewers around the world.
According to the judge, zoosadists were drawn into the network after showing interest in animal abuse material posted on YouTube, Facebook and TikTok. They were then invited to more private platforms, including Discord and Telegram.
Some users paid to ‘adopt’ a monkey, allowing them to dictate how the torture should be carried out. Others involved in the network could submit suggestions for further sadistic abuse.
As he sentenced Poklek for his involvement in the ‘vile’ network, Judge Grout said the current five-year maximum sentence for animal cruelty might not be sufficient in cases of this kind.
‘I feel bound to say that the facts of this offending are, many may feel, a compelling example of why a five-year maximum sentence is too low by a significant margin,’ he said.
‘It is for Parliament to consider whether the maximum sentence for offending such as this, where extreme physical and psychological torture has been inflicted upon helpless animals resulting, in some instances, in their death, ought to be increased.’
Prosecutor Alex Kettle-Williams told the court that Poklek used the name ‘BP’ online. He ran a chat group called ‘BP empire’ and was described as ‘a controlling figure in what is known as the “monkey hate community”.’
Ms Kettle-Williams said police uncovered evidence that Poklek had made a request for the killing of a stump-tailed monkey, drafted scripts of how the videos would be made, and made repeated requests for death by hammer.
Other members of the monkey torture group who were jailed over their involvement in the ‘cult’
She said: ‘There are requests and conversations about how the death should be carried out after significant torture.’
The prosecutor said police had found thousands of videos while investigating Poklek, and as examples of the abuse she pointed the judge to a 39-minute video of a baby monkey being tortured by being plied with alcohol, set on fire and bound with zip ties.
In a second video lasting almost half an hour, another baby monkey was mutilated with scissors while clearly still alive.
Poklek was captured after he tried to get hold of court documents from a monkey torture criminal case in the US.
After an investigation involving British police from the National Wildlife Crime Unit, the Metropolitan Police, West Mercia Police, and officials from the US Homeland Security Investigations and the US Fish and Wildlife Service, Poklek admitted running a ‘large-scale monkey torture ring’ between June 2023 and September 2025.
He also pleaded guilty to publishing obscene videos for gain, as well as possession of indecent images of children and possession of ketamine.
Ms Kettle-Williams said Poklek’s possession of child abuse images and videos had been mirrored in the cases brought against others involved in monkey torture around the world.
She said police had gathered evidence that monkeys are sometimes dressed in bonnets and nappies, and fed with a babies’ milk bottle.
There is a concern that monkeys are being seen as ‘proxy infants’ by users interested in violent child abuse.
Alexia Nicol, representing Poklek, told the court he ‘finds it difficult to explain how he became involved in this’.
She said he was seeking ‘kudos’ as an organiser of the network, rather than money, and added: ‘He is someone who was in isolation, sitting on the internet, using drugs, and in effect slipped further into a world where the boundaries became less and less clear.’
Adeolu Odusote, of the Crown Prosecution Service, said: ‘Bartosz Poklek was a key cog in a vile trade that oversaw and encouraged the sickening torture of monkeys.
‘Treating vulnerable animals in this way is a horrifying practice that must be rooted out wherever it’s found.
‘We’re grateful for the extensive efforts of both our domestic and international partners in helping us build the strongest possible prosecution against him.
‘This resulted in Poklek pleading guilty to the crimes for which he has now been sentenced.’
Will Mitchell, of the RSPCA, said: ‘Treating animals in this way is absolutely not acceptable and has no place in a modern society that is largely made up of kind, compassionate animal lovers.
‘Sadly, our figures show that more than one in five people have witnessed avoidable animal suffering online and this rises to 32 per cent of 18 to 24-year-olds.
‘If the public encounters animal cruelty content online, they should report it directly to the platform themselves, who under the Online Safety Act now have new obligations to tackle illegal content glorifying or promoting animal abuse.’
Poklek is the latest man to be sentenced in connection with the group.
Peter Stanley, of Knotty Ash, Liverpool, was jailed for 20 months in September 2024 for publishing obscene articles by sharing Facebook videos that showed the torture of baby long-tailed macaque monkeys.
Stanley, 44, was arrested following the broadcast of a BBC documentary, called The Monkey Haters, which uncovered the existence of streaming videos containing the torture of baby monkeys.
Two women were jailed at Worcester Crown Court for their involvement in the ring two months later.
Holly LeGresley, 41, of Kidderminster, was jailed for two years and Adriana Orme, 57, of Upton-upon-Severn, was locked up for 15 months.
They admitted publishing an obscene article and causing unnecessary suffering to animals.
The case follows an investigation by the National Crime Agency, the National Wildlife Crime Unit (NWCU) and police forces across the country.
NWCU head, Chief Inspector Kevin Lacks-Kelly, said: ‘Poklek was the central figure behind a series of closed online groups whose members shared a common and depraved fascination with inflicting prolonged, escalating torture on monkeys.
‘Those inflicting the torture deliberately kept the animals alive for as long as possible to extend their suffering and recorded the acts for their own perverse gain.’
When police raided Poklek’s home they discovered an ‘operations-command style set-up’ from which he ran the network.
Investigators said the groups operated with the structure and discipline of a crime group rather than a loose online community.
The network included welcoming committees to recruit and vet prospective members, archivists to catalogue and distribute material and fundraisers to finance the group’s activities.
Membership was granted only to those who demonstrated the same appetite for cruelty.
The judge gave judicial commendations to Chief Inspector Lacks-Kelly, Detective Constables Rory Covill , Hugo McDermott and Paul Arundale, and Constable Francesca Balchin because of the depravity of the material they had to deal with in building the case.
Judge Christopher Grout sentenced Poklekl to three years and three months in prison for distributing videos showing the torture and killing of monkeys.
